Where is the principle of justice?

It is very unfortunate that a section of the print media has not dwelt properly on the irregularities and issues affecting the students of Kiang Nangbah College in Jowai. An institution that once took pride in its alumni, of having the best authors, writers and other individuals from Jaintia Hills is now caught in a web of controversies. The peaceful protest where the student community demanded their right towards improvement and development of their college is justified considering the institution needed a number of things to grow. However the action of the D.C. Jowai along with the local police officers in assaulting without provocation is totally unjustified and violates the human values and human rights of students. Yet the government says that students are the future of the state and community which is utter nonsense. Without empathy, sympathy and understanding of their plight these government officials have been acting without foresight in the name of controlling law and order.

Yours etc… Dominic S. Wankhar Shillong-3

Dr Pakem’s unreal image

Editor,
While passing near the District Library Jowai, oncea little boy asked me “Is that how the late Dr B Pakem looked like? I have heard much about this great scholar”. Hence I decided to write something on the sculpture of Dr. B. Pakem standing at the District Library Auditorium Jowai so that the bust of the real Dr B Pakem could be seen by
the young generation. The sculpture of (L) Dr B Pakem standing tall at the district library auditorium does not make one happy to look at, as the same does not exhibit the real image of this great scholar of Meghalaya. It seems that the one responsible to issue an order to carve the bust of Dr Pakem had never seen the real person while
he was still alive. How can they unveil a bust of Dr Pakem which bears no resemblance to him? They should have examined the bust carefully before unveiling it. If this sculpture continues to remain at its present location then the next generation and also those VIP’s who attend different functions who have never seen him but have
heard of him will always have the wrong impression in their minds. In fact, a professional sculptor should be able to bring out the real image of the person. Dr Pakem was a great scholar of the state and of Jaintia Hills in particular and the first Khasi Vice Chancellor of NEHU. He came from a very remote part of Jaintia Hills but rose due to his
hard work and academic integrity. I a m sure his immediate kith and kin are not pleased to see such a wrongful depiction of the man. Let’s not forget the perfect hand of artists who sculpted the statue of Indira Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi and other great personalities of India. Alas the sculptor who did the bust of Dr Pakem could not do
justice to his work. I would therefore appeal to the concerned authority to reconsider and look into the matter so that the actual image could be resculpted.

Yours etc.,Omarga LalooMynthong Jowa

The plight of bookies!

Editor,

Apropos the article, “The fog of opinion polls” by M.J.Akbar, (ST November 9, 2015) MJ Akbar may have found Today’s Chanakya prediction of 155 seats to NDA palatable but the prediction was totally wrong. It was not only Todya’s Chanakya which was wrong but even ITG-Cicero, CVoter, News X-CNX, ABP-Nielsen and News Nation were all wrong. Massive crowds may have come to the Prime Minister’s rally but the result has shown that the crowd did not translate to votes. Akbar is correct that bookies investigate every single constituency before notching up their numbers. Not only that but betting on elections is not a simple game. It is based on equations, calculations and reports from the ground sent by experts from within the loosely organised betting rackets that operate out of Mumbai, Kolkata and Delhi. Based on the initials calculations and trends, bookies open a rate, or bhaav.
In Bihar betting began three months ago with odds in favour of the BJP winning the election and as the campaign progressed, the bookies became even more gung-ho about the BJP’s chances and gave it in excess of 145 seats. But on 5th November 2015, on the final day of the polling, bookies were offering equal odds on the NDA winning only 110 seats and independents and others getting eight. The next government according to them will now be formed by Nitish Kumar. This has turned out to be correct and the disaster fell on the bookies. This is not the first time that the Indian voters have turned the Satta Market on its head. Even in Delhi, the bookies had opened the game by predicting 45-Plus seats for the BJP and less than 20 for AAP. When the BJP won just three seats only, many bookies were thrown out of business; many punters were ruined financially for life. After Delhi the disaster awaited them in Bihar.